The Variability of Lunar Mare Basalt Properties from Surface Rock Abundance

Abstract

We use the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment surface rock abundance data set to investigate how rock content changes with surface age in the maria. We find that surface rock abundance decreases with unit age as expected for a thickening regolith, but age alone cannot explain most of the observed regional variability in rock abundance. We propose that this additional variability is primarily caused by differences in the initial mare basalt properties such that some flows break down more readily than others. We calculate the best-fit relationship between the surface rock abundance and unit age and investigate the regional variability in the residual errors of this fit. Relative to this best-fit relationship, we find that Mare Humorum and parts of Oceanus Procellarum are anomalously rocky, and Mare Australe is rock-poor for its age. These regional differences, which cannot be explained by unit age, are likely due to variability in the initial properties of mare basalts.

Keywords

• Lunar maria
• Lunar regolith
• Volcanism
• Surface processes
• Planetary surfaces
• Regolith